


The Fires That Forged Us

by CrystalRebellion



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Healing, Lotura - Freeform, Lotura Secret Santa, mid-season 7, post 6, slight angst, who cares about canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-29 16:08:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17206586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrystalRebellion/pseuds/CrystalRebellion
Summary: Freshly rescued from the rift and promptly thrown into a turf war for the battle for Earth; the two space royals take a moment to breathe and partake in some human customs - and begin to mend the wounds between them before a campfire... and S'mores?  (Canon-divergent as of pre-7) (Self-indulgent fluff)





	The Fires That Forged Us

**Author's Note:**

> What's canon these days, anyway?
> 
> Have some heart-mending fluff, for my Lotura Discord Secret Santa, Shura! (I'm so sorry I'm late!)

“The stars are different.”

It took Allura a moment to process his words as she slowly turned to the man sitting comfortably at her side.  Following his cobalt gaze to the night sky overhead, a soft smile pressed to her lips.

“Of course.  We’re in an entirely different part of the universe… did you think they would be the same?”

A chuckle rumbled from his chest, felt, more than heard, and he bowed his head appreciatively.

“I have explored countless areas of the galaxy – of the universe, in my time.  It’s… _refreshing_ to see something new,” Lotor explained calmly.

A blush warmed Allura’s cheeks at the wonderment in his voice and awe in his eyes.

_I always wanted to be an explorer._

She blinked and reached toward him, hesitating in the space between.  Her hand hovered as she rapidly calculated if she should bridge the distance.

Their truce was warm and steady, but strain still laced it and guilt still threaded her veins.  She pulled her palm back, unsure if he would welcome the contact.  Not after what her last touch had done to him.

The princess studied his expression; while warm and open, a shadow still crinkled at the corner of his eyes.  Worry plagued him, some unspoken ghost yet haunted him.  She sat close enough to him that she could almost make out the faintest outline of the Altean mark upon his cheek before his eyes snapped down to her.

“Is everything alright?”

“I…” She blinked, flushed at being caught staring.  Her blush deepened and she nodded, glancing back to the roaring blaze before them.

A campfire, the Paladins had called it.  No more than a primitive bundle of thatch and fuel – it seemed to be a tradition among the humans.  The clear, crisp autumn night had beckoned them out to relax and bask in the warmth of the universe’s first light.

“Apologies,” she murmured after a moment, a stiff, formal lilt falling into her tone on instinct.  Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a shudder roll through his body as his muscles tightened.

_Did he just pull his hand back?_

Had he been wavering on the same unknown?

The two had been formally amicable, friendly, even, since the rift rescue, but everything had been… _different._  Guilt warped her actions; she was certain he merely tolerated her presence and would readily defend if she ever reached for him again.

Despite sitting dutifully by his side as he recovered - even through the healing process while her palms only hovered over him - her hands had remained clenched in her lap, unwilling to touch him without his permission.  

He deserved at least that much.

“Of course,” he replied, a tense tick flaring through his jaw as he looked away.

Allura took the moment to hazard a glance to his lap.  His hands were folded tightly, and despite his attempt to curl his fingers under, she could make out the elongated claws.

Something nagged at the back of her mind – they sat properly side by side, but the small space between their bodies felt heavy and cold; beyond that of the night air.  She pulled her eyes away, glancing around to the festivities swirling around them.

“Lotor, I-”

“Time for S’Mores!”

Allura froze as Hunk appeared in front of them, brandishing a tray of assorted food elements.

“Some… some more… what?”

Lotor’s silver head canted to the side curiously, his eyes recognizing another strange, Earth custom unfurling before him.  The wild, primitive planet had caught his attention after joining the Paladins on their home world, and despite the occasionally-obsolete aspects of it, he had found their rituals and customs utterly _fascinating._

When neither of the royals took the offered tray, Hunk smiled warmly and set it across both their knees.

“It’s… a sandwich.  …Kind of.  Watch, Lance is making one – _what are you doing, man?!_ ”

Hunk’s jaw dropped as he turned to face the Red Lion’s pilot, just in time to see him engage Keith in a flaming sword battle as both acquired molten marshmallows on the end of their skewers and waved them at each other.

A hand connected with his face and Hunk exhaled into his palm.

“I take it that is not the customary preparation,” Lotor offered helpfully at Hunk’s crestfallen expression.

“No, no not typically.”

He glared across the campfire at the two, clearly displeased at the waste of food.

“So… a demonstration, then?  As we have now learned what _not_ to do…”

“It might be quicker instead to show us what we should do,” Lotor finished her sentence and Allura couldn’t stop the warm smile that flared across her expression as she looked up at him.

A sparkle shimmered in his eyes but his smile did not touch them.

“Please,” she added, looking back to Hunk.

“Well, it’s pretty simple – you take this, add chocolate, and then manage to not set this on fire.  And it becomes a sandwich!”

Allura watched with rapt interest as Hunk held a fluffy white globule just above the flame on a spit, watching as it gently turned brown.

“If you do it right, it never catches fire,” he added, glancing back to the dueling Paladins.  “And you don’t waste the food.  Here.”  He turned back to them, adding the molten morsel on top of the dark sweet.  “And add one more to the top and you have a tasty sandwich.  Try it!”

He offered the finished S’more to the duo and after exchanging a surprised look, Lotor hesitated before taking it.

He paused a moment, inhaling the scent as if it somehow also tested the temperature before he placed it past his lips.

The crunch of the cracker sounded when his fangs sank into the soft inside and he pulled away, an expression of genuine surprise on his lips.

Lotor chewed slowly, savoring the flavor before he nodded once.

“This is divine.  Allura, you should try one,” he added, hesitantly offering the remaining half of his.  His doubt at her willingness to try his food dissipated when she took it cautiously, mindful of her promise to herself, her fingertips avoiding his.

She missed the dark flash across his eyes when she brought the morsel to her lips and finished the sweet treat.

“Oh,” she breathed, leaving Hunk beaming brightly.  She flashed another smile toward the emperor and froze.

“You... have a little,” she gestured to his lips, the smallest of dollops of marshmallow lingering.

Lotor blinked in surprise, reaching to try and brush away the remnant.

Allura began to reach for him but froze.

His eyes locked on hers, flickering to her outstretched fingers and back again.  There was no hiding or being demure, no discretion or subtlety; she was caught.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized openly, pulling her hand back.

“For?”

His question hung between them as the stars themselves collided in her chest.

“ _Everything,_ ” she whispered, unable to hold it back.  She couldn’t stop the torrent of emotions that rolled through her as the tears pooled at the corner of her eyes.  “This is entirely my fault, all of this.  I… I regret everything.  And I never want to hurt you again – if you’ll ever trust me.  And if it takes an eternity, I want to work to earn that back.  _Just tell me how._ ”

She looked away, unable to meet his shocked gaze.  All the pain, all the guilt she had been holding back burst forth.

A touch.

Something warm brushed her cheek and she gasped, a shaky inhale coming through her lungs.

As her eyes met his, her loss froze in her heart.  A spark, not unlike the one from the campfire crackled.

He his hand brushed her cheek, his fingers catching the free-falling tears.

_Touch._

He was _touching_ her.

She choked on her tears and shook her head once.  Carefully, shakily, she reached up.

Her eyes never left his expression as she tested the limits between them, her trembling hand coming to rest over his on her cheek.

“You’re touching me,” she murmured softly.

Alarm flickered behind his gaze and her fingers tightened down comfortingly at his concern.

“Thank you,” she added, softening the fear behind his gaze.  “I… I never thought you would… not after…”

Some spark of understanding lit his gaze as the pieces clicked into place.

“Allura, no!”  His free hand grasped the other cheek, pulling her closer.  “No, not… no,” he affirmed softly.

“I’ll leave you two alone,” Hunk murmured quietly, slipping away.  Allura barely registered his words as the emperor who had forged the stars as they were above them drew her closer.

Even the raging campfire seemed cold in comparison to the heat that charged the closing distance between them.

“I believed you to be reviled by my very presence.  That you’d never want…”

Lotor didn’t get the chance to finish his sentence when Allura’s palms switched to cupping under his own jaw, annihilating the space between them.

The kiss was tentative at first; as if neither were sure how to proceed or how far to press, but when neither recoiled, the incandescence augmented.

His palms curled around her waist, drawing her in as her fingers threaded through his hair, curling at the nape of his neck.

Breath was consumed from their lungs, not unlike the hunger of the fire, devouring the oxygen to generate heat.

As she slid closer to him, her left hand swung free on pure instinct, catching the tray of delectables and setting it behind her.

“What can I give you, Princess? Name it,” he murmured against her lips.  The fragile distance between them was only enough for her to speak her answer.

“I desire nothing in the stars but your forgiveness.”

A warm, earthy sound vibrated from his chest as he chuckled against her.

“I’m afraid I cannot do that, Allura,” he replied.

Her body froze and she leaned away, her palms sliding from his hair to rest on his shoulders.  She studied his expression, troubled by the fae-like quality to the light behind his glittering gaze.

She swallowed.

“I mean, I would understand… I mean, I _do_ understand.  It… I… did something rather unforgivable and I-”

A touched stilled her words, his finger curling under her chin as his thumb brushed her bottom lip.  She grew quiet, fighting to restrain the tremble that rolled through her.

“I cannot forgive you, Princess, because you have done nothing wrong.”

Altean eyes widened.

“Lotor, you cannot mean that.  I have made mistakes, I have caused you _pain_ , I have created wounds, I have-”

“Not done something entirely unexpected,” he interrupted gently.

“But I-”

“-did exactly what you thought was best to protect your people,” he murmured, curling his fingers through hers.  Allura glanced over, noting the distinct claws had dissipated.

“But that’s precisely what you were doing,” she protested.

“And now we will do so together, no more secrets between us.”

“I… I would very much like that.”

“As would I, Allura.”

For the first time in a quintant, Allura closed the rest of the distance between them, sliding her hips closer to sit right beside him, their fingertips still interlocked.

His outside arm curled around her, lifting the tray up from beside her and the princess took the initiative to tuck in closer to his body as he drew the delicacies back to their lap.

“Shall we attempt one of these?”

“As long as we do not have to spar with them,” she gestured playfully toward where Lance had managed to acquire Keith’s spear and chased the half-Galran around with _two_ flaming marshmallows.

“I don’t think so,” he agreed.

An unspoken arrangement lingered between their bodies. They worked together as a single unit, building the small, stacked assortment of sweets.  Their interior hands were useless, determined to remain interlaced.

Lotor brandished the skewer toward her, and Allura dutifully speared the cloud-like tidbit upon the point.

As he leaned forward to offer the treat to the flames, she stayed diligently curled into him, adjusting her position to account for his shift, as she reveled in the sensation of touching him once more.

With her free palm she stacked the cracker with the chocolate before leaning her head against his shoulder, content to simply watch the flame as her thumb traced designs over the back of his palm.

“Still a ways to go,” he murmured softly.

“I know, but we’ll make it.  We have each other.”

A gentle chuckle rolled from him once more.

“I meant this,” he nodded toward the gently-browning delight.  “But, I concur.”

He turned his head into hers, pressing his lips to the top of her head.

“We have each other.”


End file.
